TRAVEL - TRIP - JOURNEY - TOUR - VOYAGE

The explanations should help clarify the meaning and use of vocabulary related to travel.

Travel	The word 'travel' is used to talk about going from one place to another. It can be a verb, a noun or an adjective : Verb :        Paul travels a lot in his job. Noun :       Travel nowadays is faster than before. Adjective : There is a travel agency beside the bank.
Trip	The word trip is used to talk about a short journey somewhere for a purpose, business or pleasure. For our wedding anniversary, we went on a trip to Venice. My boss is often away on business trips. During our holiday we took a boat trip to the islands.
Journey	A journey is the distance covered when travelling from one place to another. 'Journey' can refer to a long distance or a short regular one. The journey was long and tiring. It took us 5 hours to get there. Did you have a good journey? Yes, it was quite pleasant. How long is your journey to work? Just about 20 minutes.
Tour	A tour is a journey during which several places are visited, especially on a holiday. 'Tour' can be a noun or a verb. Noun : We went on a tour of Italy. Verb :  We toured the north of India.
Voyage	A voyage is a long journey by sea or in space. Before the 20th century, long sea voyages were common. A spacecraft will take you on a voyage through space.

THIS - THAT - THESE - THOSE

This, that, these and those are demonstrative adjectives.

• This is used to refer to a single person, thing or place that is close to the speaker.
• That is used when the person, thing or place is more distant.
  
  • This computer is easy to use.
  • That coat on the chair is mine.
  • This person is my colleague.
  • That man over there is my boss.
  • This picture is clearer than that one.
  • This is my seat and that one is yours.

• These is the plural form of this.
• Those is the plural form of that.
  
  • These letters are urgent.  Please post them immediately.
  • Those men in the street are policemen.
  • I like these shoes.  They're very comfortable.
  • Those shoes on the shelf are very expensive.
  • I like these shoes better than those shoes.
  • These books are more interesting than those (books).

• In formal contexts we can use that and those for 'one(s)'.
  
  • The most surprising announcement was that made by the Prime Minister.
    (That means the announcement, the one made by the Prime Minister)
  • A shuttle service is available for our guests.
    Those interested should enquire at the reception desk.
    (Those means the guests, the ones interested.)

THEY

In English, when the gender is known, we use the pronouns ‘he’ or ‘him’ to refer to a man 

and ‘she’ or ‘her’ to refer to a woman.

• “If Mr. Brown calls while I’m out, tell him to call back later.”
• “If the lady calls while I’m out, tell her to call back later.”

When the gender of the person is not known or not relevant, and because English has no

specific non-gender pronoun to refer to a person in the singular, the pronoun ‘he’ or ‘him’ 

was traditionally used as a generic pronoun.

• “If anyone calls while I’m out, tell him to call back later.”

Nowadays, because ‘he’ and 'him' are no longer accepted as a generic pronouns

to refer to a person of either sex, it has become conventional to use ‘they’ or ‘them’. 

For the same reason the gender-free pronoun ‘their’ is used to replace his/her.

• “Someone said that they saw a man running away with the suitcase.”
• “If anyone calls while I’m out, tell them to call back later.”
• "The person who called didn't leave their name."
• "Any parent would be worried about their child given the circumstances."

Those who are unhappy with this could avoid the problem by rewording their text.

For example :

• Can you tell someone’s character from what they wear?
• → What can you tell about people from what they wear/from their clothes?

Another possibility would be to use ‘he or she’, ‘him or her’, 'his or her' or 

'himself or herself’, but this can become awkward with repeated usage.

For example :

• If a patient has a problem, he or she should speak to his or her doctor.

The use of a plural pronoun to refer back to a singular subject is not something new. In fact

it dates back to the 16th century and is now widely accepted both in spoken and written

English. Here is an example of 19th century use :

“It’s enough to drive anyone out of their senses.” 

- GB Shaw, Plays Pleasant and Unpleasant (1898)”

However it should be noted that some traditional grammarians still consider this usage to be

unacceptable in formal writing. So when writing in a very formal context it might be advisable

to reword the text in order to avoid this, but in any other register it is perfectly acceptable.

There - their - they're

Learners of English often confuse 'there' 'their' and 'they're'. 
These words have the same sound but not the same meaning.
The explanation and examples below show the differences between them.

THERE

• There is the opposite of 'here'. It means in that place, not here.
  • Where is my pen? It's there on the table.
  • I'm taking the train to London. I'll call you when I get there.
  • You can park there beside my car.

• There is, there are, are used to indicate that something exists.
  • There is a cat in the garden.
  • There are many cars on the road.

THEIR

• Their is a possessive adjective just like 'my' 'your' 'his/her/its' 'our'.
  It is used before a noun and means that something belongs to 'them'.
  • Their car is red. My car is blue.
  • They invited all their friends to their wedding.
  • My parents are very pleased with their new house.

THEY'RE

• They're is a contraction of they are.
  'They' is the subject of a sentence with the verb 'to be'.
  They're beautiful = They are beautiful.
  • Where are the children? They're at school.
  • The children are attentive. They're listening to the teacher.
  • People are voting today. They're electing a new president.

THE

The definite article 'the' designates a specific person, place or event as shown below:

Specific things	The book I bought is interesting. Pass me the sugar please.
Hotels, monuments, buildings, museums, cinemas, theatres.	The Ritz, The Tower of London, The Empire State building, The Louvre, The Odeon Cinema, The Royal Theatre
Mountain ranges, rivers, seas, oceans.	The Alps, The Mississippi, The Black Sea, The Pacific Ocean.
Groups of states or islands	The United States of America, The Bahamas.
No article is used in the following cases :
Generalisations	Sugar is sweet. Caviar is expensive.
Streets, squares, etc.	Oxford Street, Time Square
Names of mountains and lakes	Mount Everest, Lake Ontario
Countries (except groups as above)	England, France, Japan, India, etc.
Continents	Europe, Africa, Asia, America, Australia,

A LOT OF - MUCH - MANY

A lot of - much - many :

• A lot of :
  
  
  • A lot of can be used in all sentences: affirmative, negative and interrogative.

• Much - many : 
  
  
  • Much is used with uncountable nouns (for example: 'much English')
  • Many is used with countable nouns (for example : 'many words').
  • Much and many are used in negative and interrogative sentences.
    They are rarely used in affirmative sentences, except:
    
    
    • If they begin a sentence:
      - Many people believe all they hear.
      - Much of what was said was confusing.
    • If they are preceded by ‘so’, ‘as’ and ‘too’ 
          and in some expressions with ‘very’:
      - There was much noise.
      - There was so much noise that I couldn’t hear very well.
      - We ate many cherries.
      - You can eat as many cherries as you like.
      - They gave us much information.
      - They gave us too much information.
      - I enjoyed the film very much. 
    • In formal or written English.
      In affirmative sentences much and many are more often used in formal or
      written English whereas a lot of/ lots of are more common in conversational English.
      For example, much and many are generally used in newspaper reports and headlines.

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
We learn a lot of English.	I don't know a lot of English.	Do you learn a lot of English?
I make a lot of mistakes.	I don't know much English.	Do you know much English?
BUT :
Much of our food is exported.	I don't know a lot of words.	Do you make a lot of mistakes?
Many people drive too fast.	I don't know many words.	Do you make many mistakes?

---

Compare a lot of and a lot :

• Tom knows a lot of vocabulary.
• Charlie is talkative. He talks a lot.

SOME - ANY - A LITTLE - A FEW - MUCH - MANY

Some, any, a little, a few are used to express quantity, to say or ask if you have 

a quantity of something or not.

• Some is used in affirmative sentences, and also when asking for or offering something.
• Any is used in negative and interrogative sentences.
• A few is used with countable nouns :          a few apples.
• A little is used with uncountable nouns :     a little cheese.

Here are some examples :

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
There are some apples in the bowl.	There aren't any apples.	Are there any apples?
(We don't know how many, but the bowl is not empty.)	(The bowl is empty.)	(We want to know if the bowl contains apples.)
There are a few apples, not many, a small number.	There aren't many apples.	Are there many apples?
There is a little cheese.	There isn't much cheese.	Is there much cheese?
N.B.:  Asking and offering :  Can I have / would you like some coffee?

SO - SUCH

SO and SUCH often have the same meaning : 'very' or 'to this degree'.

So is used before an adjective or an adverb (without a noun after it):

• so big
• so carefully

Such is followed by 'a' or 'an', + an adjective + a singular noun : 

• such a long time
• such an incredible story

Such is used without a, an before plural nouns, mass nouns (luggage, furniture)
and abstract nouns (advice, courage, generosity, kindness ... )

• such fools
• such (beautiful) furniture
• such generosity

Compare the following sentences:

• This book is so interesting.
• This is such an interesting book.
• Such interesting books are hard to find.
• I was amazed that the crowd was so big.
• I was amazed that there was such a big crowd.
• Such big crowds can be frightening.
• The story was so complicated.
• It was such a complicated story.
• Such complicated stories are difficult to follow.
• You are so intelligent.
• You are such an intelligent person.
• A person of such intelligence is a pleasure to meet.

So ... that and such ... that are used to describe reasons and results.

So + adjective + that :
◊ The hotel was so comfortable that we decided to stay another night. 

Such + adjective + noun + that :
◊ It's such a comfortable hotel that we'll definitely stay there again.